Meet your locals during Conservation Week

The Department of Conservation (DOC) is encouraging New Zealanders around the country to get out and about and meet their ‘locals’ as part of this year’s Conservation Week, which runs from the 7th to 14th September.

The theme this year is ‘Meet the Locals – Tutakitia te Iwi Kainga’ and it’s all about getting out and about in your local area and discovering all those things that make it special, whether it’s rare native species, dramatic landscapes or the tui in the kowhai tree in your backyard.

National Media Manager for DOC, Nic Vallance, said there is a world waiting to be discovered, which is often right on people’s doorsteps.

“When you start to fossick around and learn about our incredible wildlife and wild places, you begin to realise that we have this fascinating treasure trove of natural heritage, not found anywhere else in the world.

The great thing about being a small country is that our wilderness is pretty accessible; you can find something spectacular only five minutes walk from a car park. It’s your backyard, get out there and enjoy it!”

There are events taking place all over the country to celebrate Conservation Week, from a guided night walk in Pirongia forest, to an opportunity to take part in a kiwi health check in Napier. On Ulva Island, there’s a chance to meet Sirocco, one of only 91 kakapo left in the world, and a Father’s Day tramp in New Plymouth.

The week will be kicked off by a launch at Auckland Zoo on Sunday 7th September, in association with TVNZ 6 Family, where families will have a chance to meet some of those ‘locals’ you don’t always get a chance to see, such as New Zealand fur seals, kea, penguins and our native frogs. The closing event at Wellington Zoo on Sunday 14th September will be another chance for encounters with some of New Zealand’s special creatures.

Conservation Week has been held since 1969, and is the Department of Conservation’s annual event to celebrate New Zealand’s natural and historic heritage and promote conservation. This year DOC has teamed up with TVNZ 6 to promote conservation even further.

More information about Conservation Week 2008, including local event listings, is available on the conservation week website, www.conservationweek.org.nz,